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Hodson heading to Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame

Former Central Lafourche High and LSU quarterback Tommy Hodson was named as one of the nine inductees for the Louisiana Sports Hall Fame 2013 induction class.

Courtesy of LSU Sports Information

From staff reports

Published: Sunday, January 27, 2013 at 8:00 p.m.

Last Modified: Sunday, January 27, 2013 at 8:04 p.m.

NATCHITOCHES -- Tommy Hodson is considered one of the top quarterbacks to come out of Lafourche Parish.

Hodson was an all-state quarterback at Central Lafourche and was parlayed that success into a record-setting career at LSU.

This summer, Hodson will add something else to his impressive football résume. He will become a hall of famer.

On Saturday, Hodson was named as one of the nine inductees for the Louisiana Sports Hall Fame 2013 induction class.

Joining Hodson in the 2013 class are former NBA All-Star Shaquille o'Neal, tennis great Chanda Rubin, eight-time NFL Pro Bowl selection Kevin Mawae, former Grambling and American Basketball Association star James Jones, nationally-acclaimed jockey Ronald Ardoin, former UNO and NBA player Ervin Johnson, former Newman High basketball coach the late Ed "Skeets" Tuohy and amateur all-around athlete the late Anna Koll.

“What an incredible inaugural class for the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Museum. I am particularly proud that three LSU Tigers I have watched throughout their careers are part of this class,” Lt. Governor Jay Dardenne said. “The museum is going to house a magnificent collection showcasing the many sports legends who are part of Louisiana's extraordinary sports legacy."

The 2013 induction class will be officially enshrined on June 29 in Natchitoches to culminate the June 27-29 Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Induction Celebration. The group will be the first class to be welcomed into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Museum, operated by the Louisiana State Museum system in a partnership with the Louisiana Sports Writers Association. The striking two-story, 27,500-square foot structure faces Cane River Lake in the National Historic Landmark District of Natchitoches and will open this summer.

A 30-member Louisiana Sports Writers Association committee selected the 2013 inductees. The panel considered a record 146 nominees from 26 different sport categories on a 33-page ballot, said Hall of Fame chairman Doug Ireland.

Hodson was a four-year starter and All-SEC quarterback from 1986-89 at LSU. He guided the Tigers to the 1988 SEC championship while setting SEC and LSU records with 9,115 career passing yards and 69 touchdowns. He played seven NFL seasons for four teams, finishing with the New Orleans Saints.

O'Neal exploded into prominence playing for Hall of Fame coach Dale Brown at LSU, where he was the 1991 national Player of the Year. During a 19-year NBA career, O'Neal won four world championships, a 1996 Olympic gold medal, three MVP honors in 15 All-Star Game appearances and posting career averages of 23.7 points and 10.9 rebounds for Orlando, the Los Angeles Lakers, Miami, Phoenix, Cleveland and Boston. He was named one of the NBA's 50 Greatest Players in 1996.

Rubin was ranked as high as No. 6 in the world in singles and No. 9 in doubles as a pro. She reached four Grand Slam semifinals in doubles, winning at the Australian Open in 1996, and made deep runs in singles in each major, along with claiming the 1992 Wimbledon Junior Singles crown at 16.

Mawae had a 16-year NFL career, the last 14 as a center for Seattle, the New York Jets and Tennessee Titans. He retired after playing in the 2010 Pro Bowl but remained president of the NFL Players Association until 2012, playing a key role in the NFL's labor dispute in 2011.

Jones helped Grambling win three Southwestern Athletic Conference titles while averaging 20 points and eight rebounds under Hall of Fame coach Fred Hobdy before being the 13th pick in the 1967 NBA draft. Jones opted to sign with New Orleans in the ABA, and made six All-Star Game appearances in seven seasons and became the second 2,000-point scorer in league history before playing his last two years in the NBA.

Johnson never played high school basketball and was a 6-foot-11 bagboy at a Baton Rouge grocery when introduced to then-UNO coach Tim Floyd. In four seasons (1990-93) for the Privateers, he developed into a second-team All-American who helped UNO to two NCAA Tournaments and was a first-round pick (23rd overall) 1993 NBA draft. He played 845 games for Seattle, Denver, Milwaukee and Minnesota.

Ardoin finished a 30-year riding career with 5,226 wins, becoming only the 16th jockey to reach the 5,000-victory plateau.

Tuohy developed into a revered prep basketball coach who won three state titles among nine state tournament appearances in 15 seasons before a 1975 stroke that halted his coaching career. His Newman teams won district championships each year as he went 403-74 and never lost more than nine games in a season. He passed away in 1982, at age 51.

Koll was described as “New Orleans' Greatest All-Around Girl Athlete” in the 1930s as she excelled in tennis, track and field, indoor baseball and basketball. She won the Southern women's tennis championship twice, set Southern AAU records in the sprints, hurdles and broad jump, led the AAU indoor baseball title three straight years as she led the league in hitting, and made all-star teams in basketball. She dies in 1988 at the age of 83.

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